If the plan unfolds as expected, the platform will offer an easier way to set up and control the raft of iOS-compatible smart devices that have appeared in recent years, including the Google-owned Nest home thermostats and Phillips' Hue wi-fi-connected lightbulbs. Another maker of such connected devices, Dropcam, is reportedly the target of an acquisition by Nest.

The software platform would let iPhone owners wirelessly signal their arrival at home and, for example, switch lights on or activate home security systems.

Read this

If the report is correct, Apple's vision for home automation would borrow from its iBeacon system. Apple has been trialling the indoor positioning tech — which relies on low-energy Bluetooth transmitters to trigger a push message to iOS devices directing users to the Apple Store website — at its own retail outlets.

The centrepiece of the home system will be a new version of Apple TV, which may be released later this year and will equip the Apple content hub to handle connected devices other than TVs.

The Financial Times report points to an Apple patent published last year which depicts a home relay server that communicates with phones and tablets to estimate the location of a user and work out from there what signals to send to things such as garage door openers, climate controllers, music systems, and home security systems.

Rumours of Apple broadening its TV portfolio have been around for nearly two years, although no significant new launch has been forthcoming. However, speculation around the smart home platform, and Apple TV's central role in it, lend the rumours more credibility.

To ensure it has compatible home products, Apple is planning to set certification standards for product manufacturers under a similar scheme to its existing Made for iPhone program for makers of iOS peripherals such as headphones. The products would then be sold through Apple's retail outlets.

The move is being viewed as a response to Google's push into home automation with its $3.2bn acquisition of Nest Labs — a company that includes former senior Apple execs among its founders. Apple's other big rival Samsung is also thought to be planning for its smartphones to play a central role in controlling its other smart devices, such as refrigerators and TVs.

Apple's first move on the Internet of Things, however, came with the launch of CarPlay, its systems for dashboards in cars.

News of Apple's push into the home automation market comes shortly after an old regulatory filing from Google — ahead of its acquisition of Nest — revealed it believed it could soon be serving ads to smart-connected devices in the future in addition to smartphones and tablets.

While a smartphone at the centre of home automation technologies could be a great convenience, it raises the security stakes around connected devices, with a reminder coming from Australian iCloud users on Tuesday. As ZDNet reported, affected iOS owners woke up to discover that their device had been hacked and a passcode added that prevented them from accessing or restoring their devices.

Read more on Apple

Liam Tung is an Australian business technology journalist living a few too many Swedish miles north of Stockholm for his liking. He gained a bachelors degree in economics and arts (cultural studies) at Sydney's Macquarie University, but hacked (without Norse or malicious code for that matter) his way into a career as an enterprise tech, s...
Full Bio